GM Chess Academy

About Us

About Growing Minds Chess Academy

Growing Minds Chess Academy was founded by Tomo Fukui and Alanna Katz. We have a unique approach to chess instruction in that the three of us all played competitively as young children and vividly remember the feelings and experiences associated with playing competitively.

We all have been very successful as players and coaches of young and older students alike . We understand how to promote enjoyment of chess along with successful play. We also believe in nurturing the whole student and focus on aspects of their well-being that goes beyond mere tactics and strategy.

​Beyond our core group of instructors, we have an experienced team of top-notch teachers who are comfortable working with children of all ages and ability levels. Our instructors aren’t just good chess players; they are teachers that connect with the children to both improve their chess ability and promote enjoyment of the game.

Growing Minds Chess Academy has been teaching chess to over 3500 children for the past 10 years.

Our Keys to Chess Success

1. All about the student

​Our main goals are to improve students’ playing skill, interest in chess and confidence as players. We carefully structure each class/lesson to optimize the experience of the specific students in the classroom. We also maintain a constant dialogue with parents so that we can be partners in student development.

2. Perfect fit

We have experienced instructors who specialize teaching different groups of children. We recognize students have a wide range of learning and playing styles and we are astute at making a perfect fit. We work to adapt our teaching to the students’ ability and attention levels rather than the other way around. We also design a stimulating program and are experienced at keeping children engaged and progressing.

3. Bi-Lingual instruction

Growing Minds Chess Academy embraces culture and multilingualism. Not only have we worked with and learned to teach students from different backgrounds, we have instructors that can teach chess in Spanish, Chinese and Russian.

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